Scabbard for emergency kit knife



Oct. 27, 1959 s. L. BENNETT scABBARD FOR EMERGENCY KIT KNIFE Original Filed June 4I 1957 ,.lM-M'L INVENTOR Salza/@LL Bauzeit United States Patent C) SCABBARD FOR EMERGENCY KIT KNIFE Samuel L. Bennett, Columbia, S.C.

Original application June 4, 1957, Serial No. 663,563, now Patent No. 2,879,591, dated March 31, 1959. Divided and this application October 29, 1957, Serial No. 698,318

Claims. (Cl. 224-2) (Granted under Title 35, U.S. Code (1952), sec. 266) The linvention described herein, if patented, may be manufactured and used by or for the Government for governmental prurposes, without the payment to me of any royalty thereon.

This application is a division of my copending application, Serial Number 663,563, tiled June 4, 1957, now Patent No. 2,879,591.

The invention relates to survival kits for use by grounded aviators, lost campers, hunters, soldiers, wrecked sailors, or the like. When such an individual is forced by circumstances to survive for an indefinite period until he can reach civilization or is rescued, he usually is without any special aids to such survival. Aircraft and lifeboats commonly contain survival kits but these may well be lost in the disaster or, in any event, are not generally small enough to be carried on the person or likely to be available to an individual in the event he is separated from his party or from the vehicle carrying the kit. It is clear, therefore, that it would be tremendously advantageous if the kit comprised some common tool or weapon and/ or scabbard therefor which would normally be carried on or worn on the person. In such an event, each individual would have his own survival kit with him at all times and -would not have to depend upon a community kit in the event he became separated from his party.

With the foregoing in view, it is an object of the invention to provide an improved survival kit for an individual.

A further object is to provide an improved survival kit which is combined with a tool or weapon which is commonly worn on the person.

A further object is to provide an improved survival kit which comprises a personal tool or weapon and a scabbard therefor.

A further object is to provide an improved scabbard for a tool or weapon, which scabbard included means mounting thereon elements of a survival kit.

Other objects and advantages reside in the particular structure of the invention, the structure of the several elements or components of the same, combinations and subcombinations of such elements, all of which will be readily apparent to those skilled in the art upon reference to the attached drawing showing one embodiment of the invention in conjunction with the following specification wherein the invention is described and claimed.

In the drawing:

Figure l is a perspective view of a survival kit ac cording to the invention and comprising a knife sheathed in a scabbard therefor;

Figure 2 is a transverse vertical sectional view through the scabbard apart from the knife;

Figure 3 isa longitudinal vertical sectional view of the scabbard which is taken substantially on the plane of the line 3 3 of Figure 2;

Figure 4 is a plan view of Figure 3; and

Figures 5, 6 and 7 are respectively horizontal sectional ICC views taken on the planes of the lines 5-5, 6-6, and 7-7 of Figure 2.

Referring specifically to the drawing wherein like reference characters designate like parts in all views, 14 designates generally a scabbard for a tool or Yweapon which in the embodiment illustrated comprises a knife 15.

The scabbard 14, comprises a `front wall 16, rear wall 17 and two side walls 18. The lower or forward ends of the front and rear walls 16 and 17 are preferably pointed and formed with aligned holes 16' and 17 respectively for the loop 19 of a flexible member 20 the purpose of which will be apparent hereinafter. The side walls 18, 18 are inset from the free edges of the front and rear Walls 16 and 17 so as to provide laterally directed grooves 21 which merge at the forward or lower ends to form a substantially V-shaped recess outwardly of the similarly shaped scabbard pocket 22. A two-tined fish spear head 23 is shaped to be substantially complementary to the recess formed by the merged grooves 21 and is received therein in straddling relation to the lower or forward end of the scabbard pocket 22. The butt end of the spear head 23 is formed with a keyhole slot 24 which aligns with holes 16' and 17 and through which the loop 19 of the exible member 20 is threaded whereby to retain the spea-r head 23 in its recess. The free edges of the front and rear walls 16 and 17 project sufficiently beyond the side walls 18 to sheath the barbs 25 of the tines of the spear head 23. Likewise, all but the lower or forward portion of the spear head receiving recess is closed by cover walls 26, 26 which terminate just below the barbs 25 and provide tubular side pockets 40 having open lower ends. This arrangement permits the spear head 23 to be removed from and inserted into its recess when free of the retaining loop 19 in a manner readily understood.

As is apparent from Figures 2 and 3, the spear head 23 occupies only the lower portions of the grooves 21. In the tubular side sockets 40 above the barbs 25 of the spear head 23, other survival kit items may be carried. Thus, in the embodiment illustrated, the tubular side pocket 40 of one groove 21 carries a single-tined spear head 27 while the other tubular side pocket 40 carries a small file 28. These items are retained in the side pockets 40 of grooves 21 by the spear head 23 and may be used in a variety of ways. For instance, the knife 15 may be used to cut a stick for forming the shaft of a fish gig or small game spear utilizing the spear head 23 and/or the spear head 27. These are lashed to the shaft by the flexible member 20. When the spear head 27 is used with the spear head 23, the butt end of the former is fitted into the `slot 24 of the latter to provide a three-tined spear head. The file 28 is used to maintain the points and barbs of the spear heads sharp and may be used also to sharpen the knife 15 or to sharpen the points or barbs of fish hooks carried by the knife as will appear later.

The scabbard 14 may be supported on the person in any suitable manner as by the hanger strap 29 which is secured to the rear wall 17 in any suitable manner and by the double belt hook 30 carried by the upper end of the hanger. Likewise, a knife strap 31 may be carried by the hanger 29 for retaining the knife 15 in the scabbard 14 in a manner readily understood. The strap 31 is secured in a knife retaining position by any suitable means such as the separable fastener elements 32 and 33 carried respectively by the strap 31 and front wall 16 of the scabbard.

It follows from the foregoing, that the knife and scabbard therefor comprise a novel and eicient survival kit which is about equally eiiicient on land or sea. Moreover, it is clear that it s such a device as would normally be worm on the person at all times during an expedition whereby it would always be available as needed.

Likewise, while there has been shown a particular weapon and scabbard therefor, it is clear that the invention is susceptible of application to other weapons and! or tools and the scabbards therefor. Thus, while there has been shown and described what is now thought to be the preferred embodiment of the invention, it is to be understood that the same is capable of other forms and expressions. Consequently, the invention is not considered as being limited to the precise structures shown and described hereinabove except as hereinafter claimed.

I claim:

1. A tool or weapon scabbard, comprising a tool-seating pocket comprising a front wall, a rear wall, there being two side walls connecting said front and rear walls together in spaced relation, said side walls having lower ends which converge to provide a lower end for said pocket, said front and rear walls having side edges projecting laterally outwardly of said side walls to provide a pair of laterally outwardly directed grooves outwardly of said pocket, said grooves having upper portions and means closing said upper portions of said grooves whereby to provide two tubular side pockets having open lower ends to permit objects to be inserted therein from below.

2. A tool or weapon scabbard, comprising a tool-seating pocket comprising a front wall, a rear wall, there being two side walls connecting said front and rear walls together in spaced relation, said side walls having lower ends which converge to provide a lower end for said pocket, said front and rear walls having side edges projecting laterally outwardly of said side walls to provide a pair of laterally outwardly directed grooves outwardly of said pocket, said grooves having upper portions, means closing said upper portions of said grooves and providing sol 4 tubular side pockets having open lower ends, and means carried by said walls and having retainer portions projecting into said open lower ends of said side pockets for retaining at least one object in each of said tubular side pockets.

3. A tool or weapon scabbard, comprising means providing an upright tool or weapon receiving pocket, having an open upper end and a closed lower end, means providing a pair of side pockets laterally of opposite sides of said upright pocket and above said lower end of the latter, said side pockets having open lower ends, retainer means for retaining objects in said side pockets, and means releasably securing said retainer means to said scabbard.

4. A scabbard according to claim 3, wherein said retainer means comprises bifurcated means straddling said closed lower end of said upright pocket and having retainer portions projecting into said open lower ends of said side pockets.

5. A scabbard according to claim l, there being a single retainer means carried by said scabbard having retainer portions projecting into both of said open lower ends of said side pockets to retain objects therein.

References Cited in the le of this patent UNITED STATES PATENTS 831,771 Bragg Sept. 25, 1906 1,768,496 Trager June 24, 1930 2,527,711 Davidson Oct. 31, 1950 FOREIGN PATENTS France May 5, 1954 

